Liverpool: Passion Play at St John Bosco Arts College

Pupils at St John Bosco Arts College in Croxteth, Liverpool, recently took part in a powerful retelling of The Passion.

The performance is one of the most significant events in the school's calendar, and students across all year groups participate, whether through acting, singing, dancing, or narrating. This year, around 70 young people took part.

The Passion Play, a cherished St John Bosco Arts College tradition, has been performed annually for over 10 years - each time in a unique way. It blends faith with creativity, putting a modern twist on the religious retelling by incorporating contemporary music alongside traditional hymns.

School chaplain Anne Quirk is the writer and director of the play, and this year, the main musical artist featured was Coldplay, with the production including tracks like 'We Pray', 'All My Love', and an instrumental version of the hit 'Viva La Vida'.

The choice to feature modern songs and artists enabled pupils to relate to the narrative on a personal level, while also adding a different dimension to their understanding of Christianity and other people's journeys and beliefs, some of which they may not have previously associated with faith.

Other songs in the performance included Moby's 'Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?' to demonstrate the feelings of various characters, and the hymn 'This Is My Body' during the Last Supper, which was sung beautifully by the award-winning school's choir.

Anne Quirk is truly dedicated to The Passion Play and works hard to create the perfect script, select moving music, and design an engaging set. The vision is then exceptionally brought to life by the performing arts department and talented pupils.

This year, she also made the decision to emphasise and use colour as a storytelling device to further portray the feelings of various characters, such as sashes of green for Palm Sunday, silver for Judas' betrayal, yellow for the moment of Peter's denial and cowardice, and red for Pilate washing the blood off his hands.

Parents, carers, local parishes, and members of the community were invited to come together to enjoy the powerful performance and reflect on the messages it conveyed.

A proud Catholic school, St John Bosco Arts College wants its pupils to reflect on The Passion, so that they gain a deeper understanding of what happened to Jesus and the sacrifices that he made, carrying these messages into their daily lives.

Year 10 pupil Ria said: "I felt this year's Passion brought to light the guilt felt by Pontius Pilate, Judas and Thomas, who betrayed and denied Jesus. We really get to see the different perspectives during the ordeal that took place."

One of the most moving scenes of the evening was when students carried the cross, which had been signed by the cast themselves. Each pupil had written a word on it representing what they see as bad in our world, and something they would like to be free from.

The carrying of the cross has been included in the production since 2015, and it continues to touch and resonate with the wider school community each year.

The play was a huge success and received a standing ovation from the audience, who were deeply moved. A second performance was held during the school day for other pupils, and this too earned resounding applause.

Anne Quirk said: "I am immensely proud of our young people. Their commitment to sharing this story each year is inspiring; they bring the script to life through expressive and heartfelt performances and ensure that each member of the audience is fully immersed in this important journey. I am certain that their talent and devotion will have a long-lasting impact on everybody who had the pleasure of watching.

"It is so wonderful to see these ideas come to fruition, and I couldn't have done any of this without the incredible help, support, and guidance from our amazing performing arts department: Mrs Ellison, Mrs Finnegan, and Mr Gaffney!"

Pupil, Jess, shared her thoughts on the performance, saying: "This year, I really appreciated the work that went into constructing the Passion. I loved how they personified the actions against Jesus through their use of colours. I thought that was really clever."

Headteacher of St John Bosco, Darren Gidman, commented: "Our pupils have worked extremely hard to put together and perform this year's Passion Play, and it shows - the production was absolutely outstanding. A huge well done to everyone involved!

"As a Catholic Salesian community, it is important that we each play our part in sharing the story of Jesus Christ and the lessons he taught us. Our school strives to spread love and connect with our wider community, and our annual Passion Play is one of our most meaningful ways of creatively doing so."

Staff and students at St John Bosco Arts College are already looking forward to next year's original performance and continuing to honour their mission of inspiring one another to flourish in faith and hope through song, dance, and storytelling.

St John Bosco Arts College is located in Croxteth, Liverpool. The college is an exciting, vibrant and dynamic girls' Catholic comprehensive school with a proud Salesian ethos. For more information, visit: www.stjohnboscoartscollege.com